Page 72 of Luck of the Draw

“Stop that.” Liza looked at him again, squinting incredulously this time. “Just…like…realize that you can’t bullshit something like this with me. I know you too well. And I’m always right. You know that. I’m right about this, too.”

Liza did tend to be right about basically everything. Brennan didn’t like the implications of her being right about this, and not saying anything at all seemed like the best response to avoid throwing himself headlong into that can of worms.

“You love her,” Liza underscored, wrapping the three thick sections of hair into a braid. “And I love you, so I love her, too. No matter what happens with all of this, I’m going to do what I can to take care of her for as long as I’m able. And I don’t know how to explain what…” She paused and crinkled her brows together. “I have this feeling, thisknowing, and I haven’t been able to figure out how to articulate it. But it’s something like…loving her like this is going to make you love yourself. Like…in a way that you’ve always needed to. You probably do need to be in therapy for a lot things, but I’m not going to get into that again right now because you’re already dealing with a lot.But…In the meantime, you love her, and it’s going to make you take care of yourself so you can keep taking care of her. You’re going to do all this stuff for her when she finally wakes up, and the way that’s going to make her feel is going to trigger something in you. She’s going to make you want to be the best version of yourself and becoming that is going to make you value you the person you are. And you’re really amazing, B.”

Liza shook her head slowly as she finished the braid and tied it off, smoothing her hand over the side of Skye’s head. Reaching for her purse again, she slipped out a tiny, light blue packet and tore it open. Inside was a little, white, square cloth, and she unfolded that.

“I wish you could see how good you really are,” she went on, bracing the side of Skye’s head with her hand so she could gently wipe the cloth over her forehead, then her cheeks, and down her neck. “You have so much shit that keeps you from seeing how truly good you are. None of us have been able to make you see that. But she will.”

Brennan couldn’t speak. He wasn’t sure about this feeling Liza was talking about that would trigger this nameless thing inside him, but her words managed to trigger a boulder that lodged itself in his throat. And that caused him to lean over his lap and hang his head below his shoulders again.

Liza moved away from the bed, and he heard the shifting and movement of her doing other stuff in the room. After a few seconds, the other chair slid into his peripheral vision, and Liza sat down beside him. She looped her arm around his and tilted her head sideways to rest on his shoulder.

“It’s all going to be okay. So have faith in something right now.” She set a small plastic bag in his lap. There were three cookies inside. “And have a cookie.”

“Cookies are always a good idea.” Pulling himself together, Brennan smiled and opened the bag. He passed one cookie to Liza and took one for himself, then held it up in front of her. “Cheers, darlin’.”

“Cheers.” Liza bumped the side of her cookie against his and then waved it at Skye. “We’ll split the last one and eat it on her behalf. When she’s up, I’ll make a really special batch to celebrate.”

Brennan turned his head to press a kiss to the top of her head. “Good plan, L.”

She nodded against his shoulder. “Good talk, B.”

“Yeah,” he agreed. Truth be told, he didn’t agree with all of it. Namely the part where she said it was all okay. And then there was all the love stuff that just made him anxious and filled him with dread he was too familiar with.

The dread of knowing how he felt and knowing what that feeling always resulted in.

Exhibit A: this exact situation. Sitting with a woman that he’d honestly—deep in his gut; in the roots of his soul—believed was his soulmate, the person he’d been destined since the beginning of time to find and claim as his own, only to be wrong. Only to realize that she had always been destined for his best friend, and therefore had to get friend-zoned harder than any other person in the history of every relationship between a man and a woman that had ever existed.

Except somehow this situation with Skye was way worse. Brennan had known from the first moment she opened her mouth that she was temporary. Regardless of what his feelings were doing, that was still going to be the case when she woke up.

If she woke up at all.

“Are you going to teach me to do that?” he asked in pure desperation to get his mind off all the crap.

She chewed and swallowed. “Do what?”

He waved the cookie at Skye again. “Braid hair.”

Liza chortled. “You want to learn to braid hair?”

“Yeah.” He took a bite of the cookie, slowly chewing and swallowing as he continued to gaze at Skye’s sweet, but totally still face. “What if you have a little girl? I should know how to do that. So should Connor. You should teach us both.”

She laughed again. “Connor would sooner walk on hot coals before he would braid anyone’s hair. That’s not tough guy stuff. He only does tough guy stuff.”

“Nah,” Brennan countered. “He’s going to be all about that little girl stuff. Just wait.”

“You sound like you think it’s a girl.” Liza bumped her shoulder against his. “Are you hoping for a girl?”

“I’m hoping for whatever y’all are hoping for.” He paused. “But…you know…if it happens to be a little girl with Connor’s piercing blue eyes and your amazing, espresso-hued hair—”

“You like myamazing, espresso-hued hair, B.? And Connor’spiercing blue eyes?” She snickered quietly. “You sure do have a way with words.”

“It’s accurate. Is it not?”

“Yes. It’s also flattering.” She finished her cookie and dusted off her hands. “And I agree. That’s what I’m hoping for, too. I told Connor if it’s a girl, I want to name her something old and southern. Like Savannah. Or Annabeth. Or Della.”

“Annabeth or Della?” Brennan furrowed his brow. “You’re going to name your daughter after one of my sisters? You’ve never even met them.”

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